Love is in the Air
by Kristine Angela Booth
Summary: A strange new trouble in Haven, causes people to propose to their significant other. In this strange twist of events, Nathan gets affected by the trouble. Will Audrey be able to solve it before her fake fiancé is lost? I wrote this for a Big Bang on the fanfiction amino, and decided to share it here. Rated T just in case


Audrey pulled on her jacket as she headed for the door. But before she could open it herself, Nathan moved ahead of her and pulled on the handle.

"What a gentleman," she teased. Nathan smiled as she walked past. He followed behind her, pulling the door closed as he went. For a moment he just watched her as she leaned against the wooden railing while looking out at the blue-gray ocean. The breeze made her bangs brush against her stunning features in a way that made her seem almost mystical.

"Do you want to stop for coffee on the way in?" he finally asked. Audrey turned her eyes to him, standing straighter.

"Yeah. As much as I like pancakes, they just don't wake you up in the morning. We should get going so we can get it before Haven does something… Haven-like."

Nathan chuckled. "No kidding." They walked down the steps, narrowly avoiding running into Duke as they ran for Nathan's car. As they pulled away the man was coming out to draw on the board for Taco Tuesday at The Gull.

20 minutes later Nathan and Audrey walked into the Haven police station with coffee cups in their hands. Nathan leaned against the doorframe of their office while Audrey sat behind her desk. There was a small stack of paperwork to one side of her computer that she turned to.

"Before you get sucked into reports, I wanted to ask you something," Nathan said.

Audrey looked up from her computer, a smile both on her lips and in her eyes. "Oh?"

Nathan smiled, shifting into a different position. "Well… There's a nice restaurant that just opened in town. It's some French name, I can't pronounce it, but I was wondering if you would like to go there for dinner tomorrow."

Her smile widened and she nodded. "That sounds fun, yeah. What time were you thinking?"

"Uh, seven? I can pick you up at 6:30, 6:45?"

"Then it's a date," she replied. Nathan smiled, moving to go sit at his own desk. The two sat in silence for several moments before Stan ran into the room, an urgent look in his eyes.

"Chief! We just got a domestic disturbance call from 1082 Waterman. Apparently Mr. Nolls has scared his fiancé pretty bad. She called us from the bathroom, said that she's scared for her life."

"Wait, Liam Nolls? Didn't those two just get engaged yesterday?" Audrey asked. Stan nodded.

"C'mon, Parker. We gotta find out what's going on. It could be some sort of trouble." Nathan and Audrey left the room quickly, leaving their coffees to sit on their desks.

* * *

A second police vehicle arrived immediately after Audrey and Nathan. The four officers all stepped out together, turning to survey the scene. The building in front of them was made from wooden paneling painted with a chipped and faded blue. The porch railing and window panes were a cracked white. In opposition, the door was a crisp, fresh white. It must've been painted recently.

"Let's get one of you posted at the front and back door. If Liam runs you need to stop him," Nathan spoke to the other officers. He pointed to each in turn and pointed to the front door then in the general direction of the back. Without any other questions the four started moving.

Audrey and Nathan walked quickly to the front door, their hands resting on their guns. Nathan knocked loudly so it would be heard through most of the house.

"Haven PD, open the door!" he called. 30 seconds and more knocking later there was no response. The two shared a look before each taking a step backward. Nathan kicked the door, knocking it open. Audrey pulled out her gun and led the way inside.

They found Liam staring at a table covered in papers and magazines. Every surface in the room was so encumbered that not even an inch was left bare to the eyes. Liam himself didn't look like he was doing great. It appeared as if he hadn't reacted at all to his front door getting kicked in, and he had large bags under his eyes. He rocked slightly in his chair, mumbling something neither could make out until they moved closer to him.

"There's not enough… What's the point if there's not enough?" his voice was close to being inaudible, but what could be heard was full of pain and sorrow.

"Not enough of what, Liam?" Audrey asked, scanning the table in front of him for clues. There were pictures of flowers, suits, churches, wedding magazines, and enough business cards to fill a shoebox. What caught her attention in particular, however, was a couple of papers directly in front of him that added what had to be prices. At the very bottom of the page circled in black pen was a number well over $20,000.

"Is it a wedding? Do you need more money for your wedding?" she tried asking him again.

"There's no point. There's not enough." His right hand lifted from his lap, a silver revolver in his grip. Nathan and Audrey stiffened, their fingers instinctively moving so they rested on the trigger of their own weapons. Liam Nolls put the end of the barrel under his chin. Tears streamed silently from his eyes, landing on a bloodied hand.

Nathan moved slowly to the other side of him, allowing him a better sight of Liam. If he moved the gun on one of them he'd need it. "Put the gun down, Liam. This isn't the solution to this problem."

He moved a finger, the ominous _click_ sounding in the room. All of his movements were slow, almost pained. His eyes were pure sorrow as he looked at the numbers scrawled on the table. It was like something inside of him had cracked. Everyone in town knew Liam Nolls, and he was nothing like this. The man was the owner of the only grocery store, and he was always there helping everyone - even if it meant they didn't buy anything. No one in all of Haven, maybe the whole county, was as happy or as kind as he was.

"Hey, Liam. What about Celia?" Audrey asked suddenly.

"Parker," Nathan warned. Anything could set off guys in this state.

She put up a hand and her determined gaze met his for a second before returning to Liam. "Wouldn't your wedding be perfect as long as you had her?"

That got him. His eyes widened for a moment as he finally looked away from the pictures, instead looking at Audrey. Slowly, Liam lowered the gun. Nathan moved instantly. Audrey took the weapon from his hand while Nathan pulled out his cuffs.

Once his hands were fastened behind his back, Nathan led him from the house. Audrey stayed inside to find Celia. She had indeed locked herself in the bathroom. When she found her, the woman was nearly hysterical as she recounted the story. She had been saying goodbye before she left for work when he had slapped her across the face. Another cop wrote down her entire statement while Audrey just did her best to calm her down so she could tell it. It ended up being almost an hour before she could get away.

Back at the station Audrey found Nathan in the interrogation room with Liam. When he saw her he said something quickly and left to compare what they'd discovered.

"Celia said that she just wanted to go to work. But for some reason, Liam freaked out and hit her. I've been thinking, and there's no feasible reason he would crack like that," Audrey told him. They stood just outside the door to the interrogation room.

"This has to be a trouble. Liam is one of the most sane people I know in Haven, but the man in there? He is obsessed with Celia and their wedding. The guy physically can't think of anything else." Nathan looked back at the door. Inside Liam had gained a type of twitch with his hand. He refused to accept a glass of water when it was clear he hadn't had anything to drink for several hours.

Audrey was about to say something when someone came into HPD shouting.

"Liam? Where's my brother? Liam!" The visitor was a tall blonde woman. She still wore a green apron with the logo for Nathan and Audrey's favorite coffee shop on it. In fact, she had been working that morning when the two had gotten their pick-me-ups. Pinned to her apron was a nametag.

"Elizabeth Nolls?" Nathan asked. She nodded, the frantic look in her blue eyes beginning to dim.

"Are you - are you the one who arrested him? Is he okay? What happened? I got a call like an hour ago, but I got stuck at work, then there was traffic. Just, is he okay? They wouldn't tell me exactly what happened over the phone, just that there was something with him and Celia and I-"

"Whoa, slow down there," Audrey interrupted with a smile. The more she had talked the faster and more jumbled her words became. By now they could barely make out anything she said.

"Your brother is physically okay. There was an incident between Liam and his fiancée, but we're trying to work that out right now."

"An incident? What kind of an incident?" she asked. It was obvious she was panicking; her eyes were wide, her hands were shaking, and her breathing was coming in short spurts.

Nathan put a hand on her shoulder to help her calm down. "We got a domestic disturbance call this morning. Liam seems to have…" he tried to find the right words to explain the mental state of her brother.

"Cracked? In a sense," Audrey suggested. "But, maybe you can get through to him. If you want to try that is."

Elizabeth nodded. "S-sure." Someone else's touch seemed to help her calm down. After a few deep breaths her shaking had nearly subsided entirely. Nathan led her towards the interrogation room and her brother. Audrey went to the other side of the window to watch how the two siblings interacted.

Liam looked up when she walked inside. There was something in his eyes - a recognition - that hadn't been there when he saw Audrey or Nathan at the house. The woman hugged her brother, sparking an idea for Audrey. She knocked on the glass as a sort of signal to Nathan that she wanted to talk. He looked over and nodded, quietly making his way out of the room and to the other side of the window.

"Do you have something, Parker?" he asked.

"Yeah, I think so. Did you see how he looked at Elizabeth?" Nathan nodded. "What if the only way to help him is through people he's close with? I think we need to convince Celia to come in here. She may be able to get through to him too, maybe even bring him back to reality."

"That might work, but there's no way she's going to come down here after what happened. From what you told me she's scared half to death," Nathan said half-heartedly.

"It's our only lead," Audrey countered. "If he's lucid again he might be able to help us find out if this is a trouble, or if he just snapped."

"So could a shrink," Nathan said.

"By then, if it is a trouble, it'll be too late."

He sighed. "Alright. You try to convince the fiancé, I'll see if I can find any other leads just in case - including a shrink. Deal?"

"Deal." The two shook on it. They glanced over at the siblings - now sitting across the table from one another and talking - then left to do their own work for the case.

* * *

After a while of coaxing, Audrey had finally convinced Celia to come in and face Liam. Even as they walked into the station she had to reassure her that he would remain either behind bars or in cuffs with an officer present the entire time they were together. Once inside she sat her down at one of the tables on the waiting area.

"I need to find the Chief, alright? We have to make sure there's nothing else going on with Liam right now." She did her best to comfort her with a smile and a small pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll be right back."

She walked over to their office and walked through the door. "Hey Nathan, so I have Celia here to see Liam... Are you okay?" Nathan has turned around faster than she'd ever seen when she walked in, and now he looked nervous and slightly panicked.

"I-I'm fine. Liam is just sitting in his cell, Elizabeth left not too long ago. And listen, I really hope that Celia can get through to him. Otherwise we may get stuck on this case a while, and a lot of people could get hurt if it is a trouble," Nathan said.

Audrey nodded. "Let's hope. She's pretty terrified to be here right now. I mean, she's barely had any time to think about why he may have acted like that. She's not mad or worried, just scared."

Audrey turned to leave the office, leaving her partner out of sight for just a second. Nathan used that second to reach behind him and deftly slip the small felt box on his desk into his pocket. There it felt like a weight, bulging in such an odd shape he was sure everyone would be able to see. No one did.

Together they led Celia back to the temporary cells, where they currently had three people. One was an old man with dirty clothes and pit stains almost down to his hips that, in his half-conscious state, reeked of booze; another was a woman sleeping on the bed provided while using her brunette rat's nest as a pillow; and last was a disheveled Liam who stared at the floor like each second he existed there was complete and utter agony.

When Celia saw him she sucked in a small breath in surprise, her previously terrified stature relaxing near imperceptibly. "Liam?" she asked, her voice a whispered plea to the man who had proposed to her just the night before.

His head snapped up at the sound of her voice. Some of the pain left his eyes and he scrambled to his feet. "Celia! Oh Celia, I'm so sorry. I wish I could change it all, but there just isn't enough. But it should be perfect with just us, right?"

Celia had started moving forward when her relief was snatched from her as he finished his sentences. Her foot froze mid-lift, her eyes locking onto his instinctively. There was no sign of anything but honesty. She carefully turned towards the officers behind her.

"W-what is he talking about? The wedding? He still thinks we're going to have a-"

"Yes! Yes, he does," Audrey quickly interceded. "At this point we don't know why he snapped this morning, but he almost shot himself because of a lack of _money_. Good thing he has his /fiancée/ to work things through with like we talked about, right?"

She looked back at Liam and nodded uncertainly. "Y-yeah. Hey, Liam. Let's talk for a while, huh?"

They sat and talked for a while. Audrey had been right about her getting through to him more than they could, but still they didn't get far. His mind was too focused on the wedding he didn't know was canceled and his fiancée who had barely come in to see him at all. The Liam they all knew had taken a vacation and rented his body to the pathetic and obsessed man that stood before them. One of them must have said something wrong, because he sat back down and resumed sending waves of pain to the floor with his eyes.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong, but I just can't get through to him," Celia said. She turned back to Audrey and Nathan in exasperation.

"It's not your fault. We will just have to find another way." Audrey paused. "Actually, you might be able to still help us. Can you tell us everything that he did the past couple days? As much information as you can give us will help."

"Uh, maybe. I can try." She nodded. Nathan led her towards their office, leaving the three jailees alone. Celia sat on the small couch in the room and Nathan and Audrey sat on the corner of their desks. The office was mostly silent, just a gentle buzz of people working in the station filling the air. Celia looked up at Audrey and Nathan, a timid determination in her eyes.

"When would you like me to start?" she asked.

"Uh, yesterday. Do you know what he did?" Nathan replied upon a shared look with Audrey.

"He, uh. He went to the store. Apparently Elizabeth, his sister, came by pretty soon into his shift. She's been working through some things, and I guess she just needed to talk to him or something. Around lunch he called and we planned a picnic for dinner. He did some planning, I think, then went back to his house. At the picnic he proposed and we went back to his place."

"Alright, thank you. We'll call with any news about Liam." Audrey gave her a smile. She stood and opened the door for her. They left it open until she left the station.

"Okay. So, the troubled person could be anyone if he went to the store. There has to be something we're missing." Audrey started packing the room, deep in thought.

Nathan's hand slipped into his pocket. His hand closed around the small velvet box. Slowly he began to pull it out. A quick scan of the floor around him told him it was safe to kneel. He bent down on one knee and lifted the box.

"Audrey?" he heard himself say.

"Yes, Nathan… whoa. What are you doing?" She was almost at a loss for words.

"Parker. We haven't been working together long, I know. And we've been dating even less. But… I feel like I've known you for an eternity. We are meant to be, Parker. I know it. So, Audrey Parker, will you marry me?" He opened the box, revealing a diamond engagement ring. The metal band was carved with small designs by an expert craftsman.

"Nathan…" Audrey responded, speechless. "I- what about Liam?"

"We can worry about that later. Right now you just have to answer. Will you, Audrey, marry me, Nathan?"

Audrey looked around the room uncertainly. Nathan was looking at her, but it was as if he was looking at nothing at the same time. "I don't know Nathan. I don't know if we're ready for this, or if this is even you. I mean, maybe this is someone's trouble making you do this," she realized.

"It's me, Parker. No one is making me do this, this is just me."

"Nathan, can we do this later? I need to talk to Duke," Audrey said, glancing outside. If this was a trouble, she had to find who was causing it. Otherwise Nathan would end up just like Liam.

"Later? I'm proposing. You can talk to Duke after you answer." Nathan smiled, lifting the ring just slightly.

Audrey sighed, looking down at the small box. She knew that ring. When his father had died, he'd left it for Nathan since it belonged to his mother. Now it was being presented to _her_ , and it was all because of a strange proposing trouble. If Nathan was like Liam at all right now, saying no could speed up the suicidal process.

"Yes," she replied uncertainly. Nathan grinned, taking out the ring. He set the small box on his desk and stood up to slip the ring onto her hand. For several seconds they shared a deep kiss before Audrey pulled away. Already she noticed how surprisingly well the ring fit around her finger, like it was made just for her.

"We should make an announcement," Audrey suggested. "We can go to the Haven Herald to see Vince and Dave. Let's even invite Duke."

He nodded. "That sounds good to me. They are definitely the ones that should be first to know. Want to go now?"

"Yeah. I'll call Duke," Audrey said hurriedly.

* * *

"Vince! Dave! I need your help!" Audrey shouted, walking through the door into the Haven Herald. The two elderly brothers sat at their table, dutifully typing away at old computers. At the sound of her voice they both looked up.

"Audrey, Nathan. What brings the two of you in today?" Vince asked, taking off his glasses as the visitors entered.

Nathan smiled. "We have some wonderful news."

"Not now, Nathan. Let's wait for Duke," she said before he could reveal anything. "Do you guys know of anything happening with a marriage around town? Divorce, cheating, anything?"

"Is there some sort of marriage trouble?" Dave asked. Meanwhile Vince had stood and was now shuffling through a stack of the most recent newspapers.

"Troubles? Audrey, I told you we didn't have to worry about the troubles right now," Nathan said. He grabbed her hand in his and glanced towards the door. "Do we really have to wait for Duke? You can always tell him later."

Vince and Dave shared a look. Dave was the one to speak. "You guys have something to tell us?"

"Yes, we do. Audrey and I are engaged. Show them the ring," Nathan urged.

"Engaged?!" Vince exclaimed Dave's eyes were wide as saucers as he inspected her left hand for a ring.

Audrey nodded. "Yep. Looks like Liam Nolls yesterday and Nathan today." She put heavy emphasis on each word, hoping desperately that they would get the hint. In an effort to make it more clear she focused on the pile of newspapers Vince was rifling through.

"Ohh," they exclaimed in realization. Knowing that they had to do something, they both started working immediately. Papers rustled as Vince resumed his search, and Dave got up to distract Nathan.

"We have a nice listing of nice places around town if you want to find a place," he offered. Nathan looked uncertain at first, but when Dave started walking he followed.

"What exactly is this trouble, then?" Vince asked as Audrey came up to join his search.

She shook her head in exasperation. "I'm not entirely sure. Liam proposed last night and was ready to kill himself this morning. I'm worried about how much time Nathan will have until he reaches that point. Since it causes them to propose I'm thinking the troubled person probably had something with a marriage happen recently. Do you remember anything?" Her eyes scanned pages as quickly as they could without her missing crucial information. Nothing… Nothing… Nothing.

Finally Vince pulled up one specific paper from the stack. "Actually, I do. A young woman's fiancé died a few days into their engagement."

"Really? Who was it?" Audrey asked hopefully.

"Uh… Oh my. It's Liam's sister, Elizabeth Nolls."

"That's how she got to Nathan. First when she handed us our coffees and later at the station when she came to see her brother." There was a pause while Audrey scanned the obituary written about the man's death. "Wait. If she touched Nathan twice, what if that's why he was affected so quickly? Liam waited almost 12 hours to propose, but Nathan only went a few hours. What if it's all sped up for him? We've got to find her fast, for his sake."

Nathan and Dave walked back over. "Hey Parker, there's a nice spot by the beach that might be good for the ceremony. We should check it out tomorrow and see."

There was a _ding_ of a bell as the door opened. "Okay, what is so important that you had to drag me away from my Taco Tuesday plans? The meat won't unthaw itself. Actually, I guess it does."

Everyone turned to see Duke. He looked around at them all expectantly before looking at the paper in Audrey's hand. "Wait, is that an engagement ring?" he asked, moving closer to look at her left hand.

"Yeah. Nathan met Elizabeth Nolls, who is apparently troubled, and proposed earlier at the station," Audrey informed him.

"The station? You couldn't have thought of anywhere better to do it?" Vince asked, looking at Nathan.

"I thought that the station was a fine place. It's where we really bonded," Nathan replied. He didn't even mention Elizabeth Nolls or the fact that she was troubled, he just continued to look at Audrey adoringly.

"Duke, we need you right now. We have to find Elizabeth before it's too late. Can you make some calls and try to find out where she's at? Her trouble could turn bad for Nathan. Fast," she said pressingly.

Her friend nodded, pulling out his phone. "I'll do my best, but my connections are typically of a different variety."

* * *

It took nearly an hour to find Elizabeth. Audrey drove Nathan's car, taking them to a park on the edge of town. She was glad it was the middle of the day, it kept the park mostly clear of other people since kids had school and parents had work. The sun lit up the green grass and the swaying trees, a rarity is a place like Haven, Maine. In the middle of the park was a bench. Currently it was occupied by Elizabeth. She looked around the grounds with a peaceful expression. Her focus seemed mostly on the sky and the trees.

"Elizabeth!" Audrey called. She grabbed Nathan's arm and dragged him along as she jogged towards the bench.

"Detective Parker? Chief Wuornos? What are you doing here? Is Liam okay?" Elizabeth asked. Her expression went from confused to worried fast.

"Liam is… he needs your help. Have you heard of the troubles?" Audrey stopped, noticing how Nathan's hand was starting to twitch like Liam's. So it was part of the trouble.

Elizabeth nodded uncertainly. "Yeah. I mean, I've heard rumors. Everyone's heard rumors. Did one of them get to him? Is that why he freaked out like he did?"

Nathan walked to a space between two trees and looked over at Audrey. "What about here? This could be a nice spot, too. I mean, no rush. We can work it out after we close this case."

Audrey sighed, sitting down next to Elizabeth. "We are pretty sure he has. And so has Nathan. It's making them both obsess over a wedding they hadn't even thought about before they were affected."

Elizabeth's eyes widened. "You think I did this don't you? That's why you're here, talking to me. Why would I do this to them? Neither of them ever did anything to me."

Audrey pursed her lips for a moment. "They didn't have to. I believe your trouble activated because your fiancé died a few days ago."

Tears started to come to her eyes. She took a shaky breath as she looked away from Audrey's gaze. After a minute she nodded. "Yeah. He-he had a sudden heart attack in his sleep. We tried to get him to a hospital, but it was too late. Liam, uh, he let me stay with him for a few days. I just went back to my house yesterday. Then he proposed to Celia and-" her voice choked.

Audrey put a hand on her back. "I know this all just happened, but I have to know what you feel when you think about it. Troubles are normally triggered by emotion. Was there anything other than just the mourning? Guilt, maybe, that you couldn't save him?"

At the word guilt Elizabeth looked up, sniffling. "Guilt. I should have been able to save him. If I had been able to get there faster the doctors may have been able to do something to help him. It's my fault that he's dead now, it's my fault." Her tears were now falling freely as she spoke. Her voice shook dangerously, making it difficult to get the words out.

"Parker," Nathan said desperately. She looked up to see him leaning heavily against a tree. He looked like he could barely stand, but once again his eyes were his. "Parker, I feel like I can't breathe."

Audrey got up, running to him right before he collapsed on the ground. She felt her own eyes stinging with the beginning of tears as she held his head in her lap. Every word was strained with anguish as she continued to speak to Elizabeth.

"His death was not your fault, Elizabeth. But Nathan's might be. And Liam's. You have to accept that you couldn't do anything, or they'll both die right now."

The young woman looked at Nathan with wide eyes, her tears momentarily ceased. "No. No. They can't die." She closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. Her lips moved silently as she repeated to herself the words that she had to make herself believe. While her thoughts moved quicker and quicker Nathan's gasps became weaker and weaker.

"Parker. I- You need to know-"

"Sshh. You need to rest, Nathan. You need to focus on trying to breathe right now. For me," she said desperately, holding his face in her hands. "Don't let this be the last thing you feel."

Excruciating moments passed slower than a turtle through a vat of maple syrup. The only change was the increase of tightness in Audrey's chest as she watched the life slowly drain out of Nathan.

"C'mon Elizabeth! You couldn't have done anything to save him! But you can save Nathan!" Audrey shouted, her sadness morphing to become anger. A tear fell from her eye and her features hardened.

"It wasn't my fault! He would have died no matter what!" Elizabeth screamed into the air before breaking down into a fit of sobs. The second the words were out Nathan sucked in a large breath of air.

* * *

"You're saying that I actually proposed to you?" Nathan asked, looking at the small ring in his fingers. After a trip to the hospital they had gone back to Audrey's. Currently they sat on the couch talking over what had happened since Nathan had no memory.

"Yep. Right in the middle of a case. Who knew you could be so romantic?" she teased.

He sighed. "I can't believe that. I don't remember anything after we arrived at the station today. Not Liam's house, not interrogating him, not the park. Nothing."

Audrey laughed. "Well it's over now. Why don't we go downstairs and get something to eat at the Gull? I'm sure Duke will put it on the house after all of this today. Almost dying can have its perks, you know."

This time he laughed. "Yeah, alright. But if he doesn't, you're paying. I proposed, it's your turn for some sort of gesture." Nathan placed the ring in the small box and set it on the coffee table before they went downstairs for a wonderful ex-fake-engagement dinner.


End file.
